Social media is the afterthought. The ancillary thing. But without the power of social networking and the Internet, the following would not have happened so quickly.

On Sunday, I get a message from my friend Kathy in Anchorage. She asks if I’ve seen a blog post from our mutual friend Taughnee, also in Anchorage.

Taughnee had found the love of her life – that absolutely life-affirming love that is so rare and real – and he was thousands upon thousands of miles away, in Paris, in a hospital, and Taughnee did not currently have the means to go be with him. You can read Taughnee’s story here: Don’t Wait, Love Big

Kathy and I agreed that we should do something.

And being the techie geek girlfriend that I am, I suggested setting up a crowdfunding site (using FundRazr) so Taughnee’s friends could contribute toward a plane ticket to Paris and cover some of her expenses.

Within an hour, we had a site and emailed some of our mutual friends to direct them to it.

Then Taughnee blogged about what we were doing: Thank you from me and tall guy at small door.

By this morning, donations were pouring in.

And within 24 hours, we had reached our fundraising goal.

And the money keeps pouring in.

All the money is going directly to Taughnee (less fees to FundRazr & PayPal).

This is the power of friendship. This is the power of LOVE.

And yes, this is the power of social networks, the Internet, social media.

But without people there – people who care – the technology means nothing.

What are some of your favorite social media stories?

This is new. It made me think of how Facebook prompts me with “What’s on your mind?” in the open post field. As if still, after all these years, I don’t know what to put into that blank field at the top of my Facebook page.

These Twitter prompts, however, mention a person and are much more specific than the “Compose a tweet” instruction in the open field on my Twitter page.

I can’t figure out the rhyme or reason for these prompts and the people Twitter is prompting me to greet with a tweet. They all seem to be people with whom I may have interacted with in the distant past (but don’t recall) and clearly haven’t interacted with in a long time. For a moment, I wondered if these were ads like Promoted Tweets and Promoted Accounts – a new way to get attention on Twitter although I’m pretty sure now that they are not.

There doesn’t seem to be any strategic value in these prompts, or is there? I see that @carollambert is a classical oil painter in Anchorage, Alaska. Maybe if I were in the market for a painting or had recently tweeted about art or painting, this prompt would make sense.

Another person Twitter nudged me to say “hi” to recently was @animated_me, an Online Services and Instruction Librarian in San Diego, California. Again, I hadn’t recently tweeted about libraries, librarians or even books other than maybe my own books.

Perhaps Twitter is just trying to be friendly or to remind me to be friendly, even to the Twitterfriends with whom I haven’t interacted in a long, long time. Like a good host, Twitter is saying “hey, you seem to know this person since you are following each other. Why not take a moment and say hello.”

Hi @carollambert! Hi @animated_me. Our mutual friend Twitter thought I should say hello. What’s new?

If you are in the market for oil paintings, check out @carollambert. If you are interested in education technology, see @animated_me. I’m pretty sure this wasn’t what Twitter had in mind, but what the heck.

What do YOU think Twitter is trying to do with these prompts?

This is a hard post to write. Emotional. Scary.

I received a message on Facebook over a month ago about another Aliza Sherman. She and I had connected a few years back on Facebook because we shared the same name. Over the years, I’ve found other Aliza Shermans, and we, too, have corresponded and connected on social networks so this wasn’t anything unusual. Until…

Aliza Sherman of Cleveland, OH

On March 24th, Aliza Sherman of Cleveland, Ohio – a fertility nurse at Cleveland Clinic – was brutally murdered in broad daylight in downtown Cleveland only days before her divorce hearing. She was stabbed multiple times around the head, neck and back. It has been over a month, and there is still no suspect in custody.

I didn’t know Aliza Sherman of Cleveland, Ohio personally. I was connected with her in the way that we connect with others in social networks because of some shared interest – or in this case, a shared name. The news of Aliza’s murder hit me in the gut. Also, seeing “my” name and the word “murder” side by side on Google, in news headlines, on Facebook and Twitter, chilled me to the bone.

I had to do something.

The first thing I did once I read her obituary was to make a donation in her name to Rescue Village, an animal shelter. I was struck with how this other Aliza and I shared a love of animals and an involvement with animal rescue. (I was on the board of an animal shelter in Wyoming and four of my dogs were rescues). What else did we share besides a name, I wondered?

Then I posted a message on her personal Facebook timeline, hoping I wasn’t invading anyone’s privacy or freaking anyone out when the name “Aliza Sherman” showed up in the news feeds of her friends, her family.

Sometimes, when we feel so helpless, we try anything we can think of to be helpful. For me, that is often amplifying an important message to my following through social media.

At first, I wasn’t sure how helpful this could be. But in cases like this – unsolved murders – every little bit counts. Keeping the word out there and putting public pressure on authorities to solve this case is important.

Since then, I’ve posted a number of times on Facebook and Twitter to help spread the word about Aliza Sherman’s unsolved murder. I’ve freaked out some of my own friends and colleagues who were initially confused by what they thought they read. I’m blogging this now to clarify and to further amplify.

Posting messages about this horrific and unsolved murder on blogs and in social networks is something that is not only do-able for many of us in this day and age but also a powerful act. You can follow this Page: Justice for Aliza Sherman and this Twitter account: @justiceforaliza and share and retweet their messages, too.

You can also call Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson 216-664-3990 and ask for justice for Aliza Sherman. Or email Mayor Frank Jackson.

Sunday, May 12th – Justice for Aliza Community Walk, Cleveland, OH

None of us has to feel helpless in the face of tragedy. Efforts large and small here, online, can add up to helping to solve a murder case and, I hope, generate some semblance of closure for the friends and family of Aliza Sherman of Cleveland, Ohio.

Can you help?

Here is further reading:

Justice for Aliza Sherman – Facebook Page

@justiceforaliza

Cleveland: Reward grows in Aliza Sherman murder

VIDEO: Person of interest in downtown murder of Cleveland Clinic nurse Aliza Sherman

Hitting midlife is not for the weak. But a positive out of getting old(er) is the desire to focus in on what is really important. Looking for meaning, the meaty part of life.

I’m in that fuzzy stage right now, not entirely certain where I should go or what I should do next. I absolutely love my career, my work and my clients. I love my family and have acclimated (sort of) to rural Alaska.

To slake my thirst for meaning and purpose in my life, I’m giving back a lot this year. Last year, I gave to a number of causes and projects through Kickstarter, Indiegogo and other crowdfunding sites, hoping that my small gesture combined with other people’s small gestures would lift someone closer to their dreams.

This year, I’m giving a lot of my time and sharing my knowledge and skills in social and mobile marketing with nonprofit organizations through my impromptu #GiveBack13 Project. (Eight nonprofits served, 44 to go).

To shake things up, I’m jumping on an RV tomorrow – #RVSX – to head to South by Southwest Interactive. I wasn’t planning on being there, but when the opportunity showed up in my news feed, I took a leap of faith and signed up.

My mission: I want to see how I can be of service. I will be seated in the Convention Center lobby – pink tiara and boa at hand (so you can find me) – willing and available to offer impromptu consultations about digital marketing. Or just to talk. I hope you’ll stop by to say hello!

I’ve also signed up to attend the Good X Global event. GoodxGlobal is a first-ever day of events dedicated to the local and global power of social good, technology and entrepreneurship. Sunday, March 10th 11am-6:30pm, Austin City Hall, 301 W 2nd St in Austin - REGISTER HERE.

I’m not sure exactly what I’ll learn or where this exploration will take me. But I’m open. And I think being open is key.

So…what puts the meaning in YOUR life?

Update: When I can, I will be seated – with tiara and boa – in the lobby of the Convention Center at SXSW. Stop by and ask me anything! I’m happy to be of service.

On Sunday, I’ll spend most of my day at Good by Global. Hope to see you there!

Previously posted…

I want to park myself in a hotel lobby or other convenient location in downtown Austin near the Convention Center for SXSW.

I will put up a little sign saying “Free Consultations,” and will spend my time between meetings and events answering questions on any topic I’m familiar.

I’m couching this as “free digital marketing consultations” but also happy to answer questions about Alaska, RVing, and book writing and publishing or even more personal stuff like miscarriage and Post Partum Depression.

I will just be still, be open and see what happens.

I may be wearing my pink tiara and boa for easy identification or will have it displayed nearby.

But the main question is: Where should I park myself?

I’d like it to be a consistent spot so people can find me. And note: I do not have a SXSW pass this year. Spending my Q1 quarter travel budget on getting there with #RVSX so I’m going rogue.

This is not the same thing as offering to donate some online marketing consulting time IN-PERSON to one Austin-based or SXSW-bound nonprofit. If you are interested in that, please fill out the request form.

Ideas, thoughts, suggestions?

American Lung Association of the Northeast - The American Lung Association is the leading organization in the Northeast working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease.

Alaska Small Business Development Center - The Alaska Small Business Development Center (SBDC) provides free, confidential technical business assistance and low-cost business training. We’ve been helping Alaskan businesses begin, prosper, and grow – for over twenty years.

Ogunte - Ogunte harnesses women’s skills to create robust social businesses, projects, and networks, that create a positive social and environmental impact. Together with the network members, they are building trading and learning platforms to break through mainstream supply-chains.

Greater Yellowstone Coalition - People protecting the lands, waters, and wildlife of the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem, now and for future generations.

Here are the organizations I spoke with in January 2013.

Are you giving back this year? Tweet about it, and tag it with #GiveBack13 so I can see what you’re up to and share it.

Starting February 14, I’m offering a 5-day hands-on, interactive course on Pinterest that takes you through all the steps to better understand how it works so you can boost your online marketing and social media engagement using this popular visual social network.

I’ll give you a clear breakdown of Pinterest features, the science and art of pinning, enhancing your online engagements via Pinterest, measuring the benefits out of pinning, and how to integrate Pinterest into any of your online marketing efforts.

This 5-day course is chock-full of downloadable worksheets, slideshows, and screenshots to walk you through how Pinterest works to the tools you can use to better track and measure your efforts. I’ll be there checking in on your progress and answering your questions every step of the way.

You get this interactive, self-guided course over 5 days (2/14-2/18) for only $97!

I hope you’ll join me! (And if you teach online courses, you might want to join this course to check out the Ruzuku online teaching platform). Starts February 14 – Valentine’s Day!

[This is the 3rd blog post I've written as part of my partnership with PGi. You can read the original version on their website here. Learn more about their elegant and easy video conferencing iMeet.]

You’ve got your business plan for 2013, have set some goals to grow, are hitting the ground running, but chances are you’ve neglected a very important area for growth. You.

With all the demands of work and life, we tend to neglect the life side of the equation and even more often, ourselves.

One way to stretch your mind and expand your skills to breathe new life into work life is to include some form of more formal learning in your week. Simply put, take a class! Continuous learning may happen each day as you work, however, taking a break from the routine and immersing yourself in guided lessons can inspire and motivate you in new, even unexpected ways.

Don’t think you have time? Sure, the “old way” of taking classes involved regularly transporting yourself by car, bus or train to the nearest college once you enrolled and paid a hefty registration fee. But in this day and age, universities are bringing courses to your computer screen, and often for free, bridging the distance and providing valuable learning opportunities without putting a huge dent in your bank account.

Here are some online distance learning options you can access:

1. Coursera partners with top universities around the world to offer courses online you can attend, entirely for free. Classes include video lecture and instruction, quizzes and assignments. Class titles include An Introduction to Online Management, Developing Innovative Ideas for New Companies and Introduction to Finance. Or stretch yourself beyond business with a humanities course such as Introduction to Philosophy.

2. University Open Learning Programs. You can tap directly into courses through individual universities including Carnegie Mellon, Yale, and UC Berkeley’s video and audio webcasts of classes. Most don’t require registration, won’t charge you a dime and you won’t get credits for them, but you will be able to access a wealth of lessons and lectures from top notch learning institutions.

3. Stanford University delivers courses via iTunes giving you access to an archive of audio and video content from programs across the university. Note that to access the archives, you’ll have to launch the iTunes app. If you don’t already have it, download it for free (http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/).

4. Kahn Academy started out as long distance online video math lessons from the founder, Sal Kahn, to a cousin. Now the extensive site offers not only math instruction but science, humanities, computer science and test prep. Their motto? “Learn almost anything for free.”

5. Lynda.com  - While not a free option, these online courses are top notch and focus on software training in everything from Photoshop to Excel to WordPress. The site has also expanded to some business courses such as Leading Productive Meetings and Effective Public Speaking. Individual memberships start at $25 per month and give you unlimited access to over 1,500 video lessons you can watch on your own schedule. Lynda.com is also looking for qualified trainers. You can propose a topic that you’d be interested in teaching.

6. Udemy  - Whether you’re looking for business courses such as Social Media Marketing for Startups or Business Planning for the Average Human or you want to learn photography tips, crafts, how to play electric guitar or master a new language, Udemy offers a variety of courses from experts in their field. Are you an expert in your field? You can also join the Udemy teaching staff for Teach 2013 (http://www.udemy.com/teach2013).

Bonus: Offering more of your own courses and training

If you’re looking to showcase your expertise, train your virtual team or even build a new revenue stream, why not share your knowledge by offering training sessions or courses online?

With Ruzuku, you can set up scheduled or on-demand courses and even add a shopping cart to charge registration fees if you choose. Take a look at some of inspiring courses set up through Ruzuku including The Art of Self-Care Primer  and author Patti Digh’s Verbtribe.

And treat yourself this Valentine’s Day to my 5-day Rock Your Business With Pinterest course on Ruzuku. (Only $97 for 5 days worth of lessons including downloadables, slideshows and worksheets). Sign Up Today!

Two other online course-building and training platforms are Mindflash and Knoodle.

You can get inspired through learning or inspire others through teaching. And best of all, you can do it from the comfort of your home office.

Read my other posts on PGi’s website:

12 Most Sensible Steps to Fire Up Your Business for 2013

Seven Ways to Juggle Better and Stress Less

Old Look

New Look

Seems to be the consolidation of the menu choices on the upper left into a drop down menu:

The New Menu

 According to Pinterest

NOTE: There are a lot of features currently – and temporarily – missing from the New Look.

“In the old look, you could mention a friend (using the @ sign and their name) in a comment or description if you wanted them to check out a pin. We’ve temporarily removed this feature, but will add it back soon. You can still share great pins with your friends using the share button at the bottom of a pin.”

Other “temporarily missing features” include:

• language selection
• verifying your website
• convert or sign up as a business – if you are in the new look
• deactivate your account – unless you revert to the old look

You can revert back to the old look and fuller functionality by going back to Settings.

More about what’s different in the new look.

The Gathering blends a wine and food tasting experience throughout the Napa Valley with workshops about digital, social and mobile media. I’ll be teaching a workshop about using mobile apps for community building and marketing and Danielle Smith will be leading a session on digital video and media training. Not to mention a wine and cheese tasting workshop and other tasty – I mean educational – learning opportunities.

Here are 6 reasons why I love the Wine Sisterhood Gathering and am so excited to be there again this year.

1. It’s brought together by a company that truly gives back.

The women who imagined the Wine Sisterhood had a vision to empower women from the start. Each wine brand they produce is paired with a cause. Purple Cowboy supports Tough Enough to Wear Pink, a nationwide campaign to raise awareness and money for breast cancer research (Wine Sisterhood’s founder is a breast cancer survivor). Middle Sister promotes the Help a Sister Out campaign to raise money for food bank charities. Other brands support the arts. I love the idea of businesses that don’t just aligning itself with causes but to actually DO something to make a difference.

2. It’s about empowering women.

Almost every article you read about the “glass ceiling” or women not getting ahead zeroes in on the idea that women don’t often form the same kind of networks that men do and do not support one another as readily as men. What I love about the Wine Sisterhood is that it is built by women who fundamentally look to empower other women to be their best selves and do their best work. That ethos is built into the fabric of the company, and it comes from the top. The Gathering brings together women who will learn together, network, and form connections and friendships that can continue after the event. We all actively look for ways we can help one another.

3. I get to (re)connect with amazing friends and colleagues.

Many of you know that I’m based in very rural Alaska for my husband’s job so am incredibly isolated. The Gathering gives me an opportunity to see dear friends and make new ones in a more cozy setting than most conferences I attend. Wine Sisterhood celebrates the importance of girlfriends in a woman’s life. And speaking of girlfriends, in addition to Danielle Smith, some of the women attending the Gathering include Debba Haupert of Girlfriendology, Carol Gain of Girl Gone Travel, Rachel Matthews of A Southern Fairytale, Lorraine Robertson of Run, Wifey, Run and Dawn and Elizabeth of Party Bluprints.

4. It’s inspirational travel.

I love to travel. Solo travel, travel for business, travel with my family, you name it. I’m a sucker for road trips and kept an online journal during my year-long RV travels (at RVGirl.com) back in 2000-2001. Travel informs my work and my life. Traveling to the Napa Valley is magical. Between the weather, the sunshine, the expanses of vineyards, the food, the wine, what’s not to love? Traveling away from my usual environment helps open my brain, releases my creative juices, gets me unstuck. I welcome this opportunity to be in the moment in a new place and discover new things that I can think about and write about.

5. I have the chance to share my knowledge.

Anyone who knows me or has seen me speak can attest to the fact that I’m passionate about technology used to empower others in positive and useful ways. I am honored to be a co-host and presenter again this year at the Gathering. My focus will be social mobile apps and how to get the most out of them for connecting, building community, marketing and getting things done.

6. We’re honoring Leila Janah of Samasource.

In the spirit of giving back and supporting women’s work, this year, the Wine Sisterhood is honoring Leila Janah who founded Samasource, a nonprofit that connects people, especially women, living in poverty to microwork – small, computer-based tasks that build skills and generate life-changing income. The same concept inspired her to co-found Samahope, a new site to crowdfund surgeries in poor countries. Leila takes “Help a Sister Out” to a global level. I featured Samasource in my book about Crowdsourcing so I have known about – and admired – her work for several years now.

I hope you’ll join me in Napa from March 3-6 for the Wine Sisterhood Gathering. If it is anything like last year, the event promises to be an unforgettable experience.

(On a budget? Note that right now you can put down a 50% deposit to hold your spot then pay the balance in in a few weeks).

This event is now sold out!

What travel are you taking in 2013 for inspiration?